What is the meaning of Luke 23:28?

But Jesus turned to them

- Amid the agony of carrying His cross, Jesus pauses and actually turns toward the mourning crowd (Luke 23:27).

- This deliberate movement shows:

• His composure under suffering (John 18:4).

• His unwavering compassion—even on the way to death He notices others (Luke 7:13; John 19:26–27).

• His sovereign authority; He is not dragged helplessly but willingly offers Himself (John 10:17–18).

---

Daughters of Jerusalem

- A tender address to the women of the city who followed “mourning and lamenting Him” (Luke 23:27).

- Echoes earlier prophetic language (“daughters of Jerusalem,” Songs 2:7; 3:5) and Jesus’ own lament over the city (Luke 19:41–44).

- Highlights that Jerusalem, the religious center, is the focus of impending judgment (Luke 13:34–35).

---

Do not weep for Me

- Jesus rejects pity for Himself because:

• His suffering is voluntary and redemptive (Isaiah 53:10; Hebrews 12:2).

• The cross is His triumph, not tragedy (Colossians 2:14–15).

- He directs their sorrow away from His own pain to the greater crisis about to come upon them.

---

But weep for yourselves

- A call to personal repentance and awareness:

• Spiritual blindness in Jerusalem would soon lead to catastrophic consequences (Luke 21:20–22).

• Without turning to Him, they would face judgment far worse than the physical scenes before them (Luke 13:3, 5).

- Even in rebuke, Jesus extends mercy by warning them while there is still time.

---

And for your children

- The coming devastation would touch future generations:

• Fulfilled historically in the siege and fall of Jerusalem in AD 70 (Luke 21:23–24).

• Echoes covenant warnings where disobedience brings suffering on descendants (Deuteronomy 28:53–57).

- Points to the sobering reality that choices today shape the legacy left to children (Exodus 20:5–6; Acts 2:38–39).

---

summary

Luke 23:28 reveals Jesus’ compassionate authority in the midst of His passion. He redirects the women’s grief from His own chosen suffering to the urgent need for their repentance, warning that Jerusalem’s rejection of Him will soon bring devastating judgment upon themselves and their children. The verse calls every reader to turn from mere sentimentality to personal faith and repentance, recognizing that Christ’s cross is victory for all who trust Him, and judgment for all who reject Him.